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As a self-admitted mobile junkie, I was interested in today’s Android announcement (best followed here) even though we knew all the details in advance.

I want to get a good (read: fast) Android device so that I can really try it out. The only current options are the Droid and the Nexus One (N1). The physical keyboard on the Droid is so poorly conceived that I’m was leaning towards the N1.

I had planned to pick one up and have it share the same SIM card as my iPhone, however the lack of AT&T 3G support (not that you can get AT&T 3G signal that much anyway) has me hesitating. Also, the fact that it will be available on Verizon in a few months, and I’ve been much happier on Verizon’s network than any other, is another reason to pause.

If I like the device, my reward will be a choice between canceling AT&T and adding T-Mobile or carrying both. Not just changing the phone on my AT&T plan. The cost for trying out the N1 for 14 days is $45 (restocking fee).

Speed on mobile devices is one of my number one features. As my usage of the BlackBerry for the last few years indicates, I rank “speed” above “pretty” in my priority list.1 I believe hardware (processor, input tools, etc.) is as important as software on mobile devices.

Android intrigues me because it has freedoms I agree with (it’s treated like a general computing platform, not a proprietary device) and has enough momentum behind it to grow and evolve and become something interesting. I think that Palm’s webOS may be ahead of it in some ways right now, but I’m concerned about the webOS’s staying power.

An all-touch device is a toy to me, not a tool.2 I’d really like to buy a “iPod touch” style Android device – with a fast processor. Since that isn’t available, I’m basically looking at a very expensive testing/experimentation device.

So most likely I waste a few days waffling, then order the stupid thing anyway.

Noting, for irony, that the speed on my BlackBerry Tour (Verizon’s flagship device) is horrible compared to my previous BlackBerry Bold (AT&T’s flagship device). A speed test of loading a web page on the BlackBerry Tour next to the Droid is laughable. The network is the same, it’s the device processor and browser’s performance that’s the issue. [back]

A BlackBerrry-keyboard style Android phone is due out this fall, but specs show a processor that is half the speed of the Droid or N1. [back]

Well put. I got the Droid (the rumors I had read were that it would be T-Mobile / AT&T Only). I loathe the hardware keyboard and the extra weight that it brings, but chose it for the speed and screen resolution (compared to the HTC Droid Eris, the other Android device on Verizon).

Between the two, I’m happy with my choice. But now that the Nexus One is going to be released on Verizon, I’m seriously regretting my purchase.

On the upside, I bought the Droid through Best Buy, who has much better customer service than dealing with Verizon directly. (I already had to return the first Droid due to a hardware issue, so I say this from personal experience as well as the reviews that had led me there in the first place.)

I’ve never had an iPhone, but I love my iPod Touch to death. I carry both the iGod (my term) and the Droid with me everywhere. They each do things the other can only dream of.

And I find that I typed equally fast on the Droid (on-screen kbd!) when I got it. But now I’m faster on that than the iGod.

I’m hoping to eke out another few months on my G1 despite its slowness, but the Nexus One is seriously tempting. The only thing holding me back (aside from $$ — I need to check my upgrade eligibility) is that I’m not quite ready to give up that physical keyboard yet.